Indiana Farm Bureau members spent the winter advocating for the organization’s policy positions at the Statehouse while other members traveled to Washington, D.C. to advocate for policies at the federal level.
“We made a lot of progress on key policy issues this year, and it’s always our goal to keep that momentum going,” said Katrina Hall, INFB’s director of public policy. “It’s important that our members share their experiences and suggestions as the policy development process continues. We have received many policy submissions from most of the counties. In the coming months, our resolutions committee and full delegate body will review and fine tune those recommendations to shape INFB’s policy for the coming year.”
Next on the policy development calendar is the meeting of the resolutions committee. This year, the resolutions committee will meet at the INFB home office July 24-25. The committee, made up of 22 members from across the state, will meet to review the policy recommendations submitted by the counties, the policy advisory groups, the State Young Farmer and Ag Professionals Committee, and Collegiate Farm Bureaus. They will then determine if those policy recommendations will be brought up before the full delegate body at the INFB delegate session on Aug. 24.
Stephen Williams, Fulton County Farm Bureau president, will serve on the resolutions committee for the first time this year. Williams has served as delegate in the past, and his interest in policy was fostered by Joe Rude, the previous Fulton County Farm Bureau president. Williams says he is excited to experience policy development as a resolutions committee member.
“I look forward to being more involved in policy,” Williams said. “If something is going to directly affect me, I want to be involved and have an understanding of how we can make it more beneficial. If it’s directly affecting somebody else, I want to do what I can to stand up and make sure that we do what’s best for them as well.”